Three Irish Raiders Set to Make Their Mark in Coral-Eclipse at Sandown There’s plenty of Irish interest at Sandown on Saturday, with five Irish raiders coming over for the Coral-Eclipse card. Rather interestingly, three of those head over for the main event and they make up 50 per cent of the field. Aidan O’Brien sends Camille Pissarro and Delacroix, whilst Jessie Harrington runs Hotazhell. Here we take a close look at the chances of all three. Midnite Betting Offer If you already have a Betfred account, check out more of the best betting sites and casino bonuses Camille Pissarro Another talented son of Wootton Bassett, Camille Pissarro was a precocious two-year-old but also managed to progress through the season. He was a good winner at Navan on debut and was a head away from following up in the Group 3 Marble Hill Stakes. O’Brien’s colt was well backed in the Coventry Stakes but could only manage 11th. The best was yet to come however and he finished the season with a Group 1 success in France, winning the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere in October. Second on seasonal debut at the Curragh, he returned to France after that and finished third behind stablemate Henri Matisse in the Poule d'Essai des Poulains. Keeping on well in the closing stages, a step up in trip was next on the agenda and it was an inspired move. Classic glory was his in the Prix du Jockey Club and he was again strong at the finish over the extended 1m2f trip. Ryan Moore had to be patient but Camille Pissarro responded quickly once the gap opened up and came through to score. Clearly he’s unexposed over this trip and there should be loads more to come from him. It remains to be seen if he’s capable of mixing it with the likes of Ombudsman and Sosie but it would be dangerous to rule him out. Delacroix Delacroix was a consistent performer at two but never quite hit the heights that he was expected to. The son of Dubawi was a narrow winner of a Group 3 at Newmarket in October and was a nose away from winning the Futurity Trophy at Doncaster after that. It seemed obvious that he would be a middle-distance horse at three and he impressively got the better of stablemate and dual Derby winner Lambourn in the Ballysax Stakes over 1m2f on seasonal debut, before following up in the Cashel Palace Hotel Derby Trial Stakes. A well beaten favourite in the Derby, it was a very disappointing display and he’ll need to bounce back quickly in order to be competitive here. The Lambourn form does bode well however and perhaps the return to 1m2f will make a major difference. Hotazhell Hotazhell is available at massive odds and he should be much closer in price to Delacroix on their juvenile form. Jessie Harrington’s colt got the better of Delacroix in the Group 1 Futurity Trophy at the end of last season, prevailing by the narrowest of margins. Definitely one of Ireland’s best two-year-olds last term, he beat subsequent Group 1 winner and Derby third Tennessee Stud in the Beresford Stakes as well. There are no guarantees that the step up in trip will suit, as his pedigree is fairly fast. Far from disgraced when third behind Field Of Gold in the Irish 2000 Guineas first time out this year, he’s likely to improve significantly for the run. We’ll need to see a lot more if he’s to feature here but his price seems a little over the top.
